At the request of The Home Depot Company, the U.S. Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) of the American Forest & Paper Association, Meridian staff convened and facilitated a panel of experts to produce a comparative analysis of the FSC and SFI programs. The panel consisted of ten carefully selected people with forestry expertise who examined the two programs as they existed in June 2001. The programs were analyzed across several subject areas, including origins, objectives, governance, standards, public involvement, accreditation, funding, and the use of program logos and product labels. The panel’s report was released on October 16, 2001.